Contents

Function Definition

Specifies the symbolic name of the parameter to be set. Six values affect the packing of pixel data into memory: GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES, GL_PACK_LSB_FIRST, GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH, GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT, GL_PACK_SKIP_PIXELS, GL_PACK_SKIP_ROWS, GL_PACK_SKIP_IMAGES, and GL_PACK_ALIGNMENT. Six more affect the unpacking of pixel data from memory: GL_UNPACK_SWAP_BYTES, GL_UNPACK_LSB_FIRST, GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH, GL_UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT, GL_UNPACK_SKIP_PIXELS, GL_UNPACK_SKIP_ROWS, GL_UNPACK_SKIP_IMAGES, and GL_UNPACK_ALIGNMENT.

pname​ is a symbolic constant indicating the parameter to be set, and param​ is the new value. Six of the twelve storage parameters affect how pixel data is returned to client memory. They are as follows:

GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES

If true, byte ordering for multibyte color components, depth components, or stencil indices is reversed. That is, if a four-byte component consists of bytes b0, b1, b2, b3, it is stored in memory as b3, b2, b1, b0 if GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES is true. GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES has no effect on the memory order of components within a pixel, only on the order of bytes within components or indices. For example, the three components of a GL_RGB format pixel are always stored with red first, green second, and blue third, regardless of the value of GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES.

GL_PACK_LSB_FIRST

If true, bits are ordered within a byte from least significant to most significant; otherwise, the first bit in each byte is the most significant one.

GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH

If greater than 0, GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH defines the number of pixels in a row. If the first pixel of a row is placed at location p in memory, then the location of the first pixel of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in a pixel, l is the number of pixels in a row (GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH if it is greater than 0, the width argument to the pixel routine otherwise), a is the value of GL_PACK_ALIGNMENT, and s is the size, in bytes, of a single component (if a < s, then it is as if a = s). In the case of 1-bit values, the location of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices.

The word component in this description refers to the nonindex values red, green, blue, alpha, and depth. Storage format GL_RGB, for example, has three components per pixel: first red, then green, and finally blue.

GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT

If greater than 0, GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT defines the number of pixels in an image three-dimensional texture volume, where "image" is defined by all pixels sharing the same third dimension index. If the first pixel of a row is placed at location p in memory, then the location of the first pixel of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in a pixel, l is the number of pixels in a row (GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH if it is greater than 0, the width​ argument to glTexImage3D otherwise), h is the number of rows in a pixel image (GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT if it is greater than 0, the height​ argument to the glTexImage3D routine otherwise), a is the value of GL_PACK_ALIGNMENT, and s is the size, in bytes, of a single component (if a < s, then it is as if a = s).

The word component in this description refers to the nonindex values red, green, blue, alpha, and depth. Storage format GL_RGB, for example, has three components per pixel: first red, then green, and finally blue.

GL_PACK_SKIP_PIXELS, GL_PACK_SKIP_ROWS, and GL_PACK_SKIP_IMAGES

These values are provided as a convenience to the programmer; they provide no functionality that cannot be duplicated simply by incrementing the pointer passed to glReadPixels. Setting GL_PACK_SKIP_PIXELS to i is equivalent to incrementing the pointer by in components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in each pixel. Setting GL_PACK_SKIP_ROWS to j is equivalent to incrementing the pointer by jm components or indices, where m is the number of components or indices per row, as just computed in the GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH section. Setting GL_PACK_SKIP_IMAGES to k is equivalent to incrementing the pointer by kp, where p is the number of components or indices per image, as computed in the GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT section.

GL_PACK_ALIGNMENT

Specifies the alignment requirements for the start of each pixel row in memory. The allowable values are 1 (byte-alignment), 2 (rows aligned to even-numbered bytes), 4 (word-alignment), and 8 (rows start on double-word boundaries).

If true, byte ordering for multibyte color components, depth components, or stencil indices is reversed. That is, if a four-byte component consists of bytes b0, b1, b2, b3, it is taken from memory as b3, b2, b1, b0 if GL_UNPACK_SWAP_BYTES is true. GL_UNPACK_SWAP_BYTES has no effect on the memory order of components within a pixel, only on the order of bytes within components or indices. For example, the three components of a GL_RGB format pixel are always stored with red first, green second, and blue third, regardless of the value of GL_UNPACK_SWAP_BYTES.

GL_UNPACK_LSB_FIRST

If true, bits are ordered within a byte from least significant to most significant; otherwise, the first bit in each byte is the most significant one.

GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH

If greater than 0, GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH defines the number of pixels in a row. If the first pixel of a row is placed at location p in memory, then the location of the first pixel of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in a pixel, l is the number of pixels in a row (GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH if it is greater than 0, the width argument to the pixel routine otherwise), a is the value of GL_UNPACK_ALIGNMENT, and s is the size, in bytes, of a single component (if a < s, then it is as if a = s). In the case of 1-bit values, the location of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices.

The word component in this description refers to the nonindex values red, green, blue, alpha, and depth. Storage format GL_RGB, for example, has three components per pixel: first red, then green, and finally blue.

GL_UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT

If greater than 0, GL_UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT defines the number of pixels in an image of a three-dimensional texture volume. Where ``image is defined by all pixel sharing the same third dimension index. If the first pixel of a row is placed at location p in memory, then the location of the first pixel of the next row is obtained by skipping

components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in a pixel, l is the number of pixels in a row (GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH if it is greater than 0, the width argument to glTexImage3D otherwise), h is the number of rows in an image (GL_UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT if it is greater than 0, the height argument to glTexImage3D otherwise), a is the value of GL_UNPACK_ALIGNMENT, and s is the size, in bytes, of a single component (if a < s, then it is as if a = s). The word component in this description refers to the nonindex values red, green, blue, alpha, and depth. Storage format GL_RGB, for example, has three components per pixel: first red, then green, and finally blue.

GL_UNPACK_SKIP_PIXELS and GL_UNPACK_SKIP_ROWS

These values are provided as a convenience to the programmer; they provide no functionality that cannot be duplicated by incrementing the pointer passed to glTexImage1D, glTexImage2D, glTexSubImage1D or glTexSubImage2D. Setting GL_UNPACK_SKIP_PIXELS to i is equivalent to incrementing the pointer by in components or indices, where n is the number of components or indices in each pixel. Setting GL_UNPACK_SKIP_ROWS to j is equivalent to incrementing the pointer by jm components or indices, where m is the number of components or indices per row, as just computed in the GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH section.

GL_UNPACK_ALIGNMENT

Specifies the alignment requirements for the start of each pixel row in memory. The allowable values are 1 (byte-alignment), 2 (rows aligned to even-numbered bytes), 4 (word-alignment), and 8 (rows start on double-word boundaries).

The following table gives the type, initial value, and range of valid values for each storage parameter that can be set with glPixelStore.

pname​

Type

Initial Value

Valid Range

GL_PACK_SWAP_BYTES

boolean

false

true or false

GL_PACK_LSB_FIRST

boolean

false

true or false

GL_PACK_ROW_LENGTH

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_PACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_PACK_SKIP_ROWS

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_PACK_SKIP_PIXELS

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_PACK_SKIP_IMAGES

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_PACK_ALIGNMENT

integer

4

1, 2, 4, or 8

GL_UNPACK_SWAP_BYTES

boolean

false

true or false

GL_UNPACK_LSB_FIRST

boolean

false

true or false

GL_UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_UNPACK_SKIP_ROWS

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_UNPACK_SKIP_PIXELS

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_UNPACK_SKIP_IMAGES

integer

0

[0, ∞)

GL_UNPACK_ALIGNMENT

integer

4

1, 2, 4, or 8

glPixelStoref can be used to set any pixel store parameter. If the parameter type is boolean, then if param​ is 0, the parameter is false; otherwise it is set to true. If pname​ is a integer type parameter, param​ is rounded to the nearest integer.

Likewise, glPixelStorei can also be used to set any of the pixel store parameters. Boolean parameters are set to false if param​ is 0 and true otherwise.

Errors

GL_INVALID_ENUM is generated if pname​ is not an accepted value.

GL_INVALID_VALUE is generated if a negative row length, pixel skip, or row skip value is specified, or if alignment is specified as other than 1, 2, 4, or 8.